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How to effectively contract your network privacy

When you use the public cloud, is your data in the "public" space?  According to the Department of Justice it is. In a number of cases, the Justice Department is asserting that data help by a third party, such as a cellular service provider or a hosting provider, can be demanded by government agents without a warrant.

But it's not just cloud computing that should concern you: co-location facilities, Web hosting and service-as-a-software may also expose you to a government fishing expedition. How can a business protect against inadvertent disclosure of proprietary information and the possibility of loss of data and service due to an overeager sheriff? Having the right contract is certainly a good start.

There are two aspects you have to consider when negotiating security and privacy with a service provider. First, you have to have the correct principles encoded in your contract. Second, you have to worry about how well they are executed by the provider.

If you read most service contracts you will see that "law enforcement assistance" sections are usually vague. It is up to you to negotiate terms that address key issues of data protection and safeguard your rights:

* Demand that law enforcement requests are properly documented. Show me the warrant. A phone call from agent Bob at headquarters is not a warrant.

* Demand that you are notified of any requests that may affect your data. You have the right to contest warrants in court and most corporations do contest them.

* Demand that each data access request, whether granted or not is documented.